


Akaashi Keiji's (not so) Secret Boyfriend

by caeos



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Fluff and Humor, M/M, Misunderstandings, POV Outsider
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-03
Updated: 2019-05-04
Packaged: 2020-01-31 08:42:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,756
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18587743
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/caeos/pseuds/caeos
Summary: It all started when Fukurodani’s new first years heard about their captain’s 'secret boyfriend' and it all went downhill from there.Because getting information from Akaashi was like trying to get water from a stone -now if only Fukurodani's old ace would quit getting in the way of their investigations!





	1. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> when i started writing this i realised damn like _all_ the team are third years, so now it’s just Akaashi and the name generator boys - I love them dearly.

When Fukurodani’s third years graduated it left a sizeable gap in the volleyball regulars.  
It also made Akaashi captain.  
As the only third year it was difficult to wrangle the new recruits into something resembling a functioning volleyball team never mind a powerhouse school, but he was immensely proud of how far they’d all come.  
  
Of course they were all also insufferable little brats.  
  
Komi’s little brother had filled his role as libero - the same small stature as his elder brother making him an agile opponent but he was easily riled and selective with his receives if he was mad at another player. Naturally their new middle blocker and wing spiker revelled in antagonising him.

Onaga was there too - like a port in a storm, something familiar to keep Akaashi sane and keep their new members in check.

Their ace was different too, it felt foreign to see that number four on someone new.  
But Bokuto was enjoying university, balancing work and volleyball well; Akaashi didn’t have to worry about him any more, obviously he did though because this was still Bokuto.  
  
But god, Akaashi just missed him so much it _hurt_ , a thudding in his chest as if his very heartbeat was falling flat. Practises were too quiet - even with this rowdy bunch of adolescents - too smooth in their passing.  
Part of him wished their new ace would do something, say something - get mad at Akaashi’s more distracted tosses, praise him for the pinpoint ones - but he was quiet, almost stoic.

The other part of him knew it wouldn’t chase away the ache in his heart, Akaashi needed a very specific kind of exasperation to feel whole again and it wasn’t in surplus supply anymore, not with _his_ captain gone.  
  
***  
  
‘Did you hear?’ Komi asked, on a rare occasion that he wasn’t butting heads with their middle blocker.

‘Hear what?’ Maki replied, only a hint of fire in his voice as he pushed his school bag into his locker.

‘About Akaashi’s boyfriend,’ Komi continued in a stage whisper, checking over his shoulder to check their captain hadn’t sneaked in on them.

‘Is Takeshi gossiping about our captain?’ Nishimoto sang as he leaned an elbow on Maki’s shoulder that was immediately shrugged off.

‘So you haven’t heard then?’ Komi deduced with a grin, their wing spiker scowled, waiting for Komi to continue. ‘Apparently he has an older boyfriend in university.’

‘Oh wait yeah, apparently he just joined the team there and is already the ace,’ Yamamura perked up at the mere mention of his position but seemingly had nothing to contribute to the conversation, as usual.

‘Whoa, but Akaashi’s so-’ Komi made some vague gestures.

‘Focused?’ Yamamura said.

‘Strict?’ Maki offered.

‘Frigid?’ Nishimoto finished.

‘Private!’ Komi asserted. ‘I don’t feel like he was _born_ , he just spurted up from the ground fully grown and discontent with everything.’

‘ _Mean_ ,’ Onaga warned, keeping a careful eye on the conversation between the first years.

‘He is very pretty though,’ Yamamura said quietly, the room falling to a hush as each player turned to look at him - Nishimoto practically vibrating at the urge to poke fun.

‘Aw, Mura and here we thought you were made of stone,’ Nishimoto teased, pinching at his cheeks and earning a hearty slap on the wrist from their ace.

‘Objectively speaking, Yamamura is right though, Akaashi is one handsome dude,’ Komi admitted with a shrug, blissfully unaware of the door to the clubroom opening behind him.

‘Thank you, Takeshi. Now are we just going to sit around and talk about boys or are any of you going to actually go to practise today?’ Akaashi scolded firmly, one hand on his hip as he held the door open for the reddening first years to run down to the gym.  
  
***  
  
But now the cryptic aura around Akaashi had been broken the first years found themselves eager to pick at the select bits of information they knew about the mysterious man in Akaashi’s life.

First was that Akaashi spent a lot of time on his phone - even at practise, where he had strictly forbidden the younger years’ phones from even entering the gym.  
Sure he _tried_ to be subtle about it, he’d been caught texting in the changing rooms multiple times - even being so bold as to message his enigmatic lover during warm up drills under the pretence of checking the time.  
Additionally, Maki swore up and down that he once heard Akaashi talking on the phone in the store cupboard and _laughing_.

Secondly, every two weeks or so Akaashi would wear long knee pads - Komi had actually mistaken them for leggings until Akaashi had jumped to spike a ball one afternoon and his shorts had ridden up his thighs.

That’s when he saw _them_.

Dark bruises littering Akaashi’s inner thighs and confirming, to the younger years horror, that Akaashi did have a sex life - and a seemingly active one at that.

They became careful for just what exactly they were looking out for from then on. A planned heist of Akaashi’s gym bag had been called off due to fears of what they’d find.

***

‘Ugh,’ Akaashi groaned, rubbing the heel of his hand into his eye as he gestured vaguely at the whiteboard next to him.

‘Captain?’ Maki began awkwardly as Akaashi just sighed again, gesturing with more vigour this time. ‘What exactly are we looking at?’

What they were looking at was a set of rules written by Akaashi himself who looked both proud and exasperated with his work.  
These rules were entitled: _Please Don’t Embarrass Me in Front of My Friends - A Five Step Plan._

‘Number one,’ Akaashi read, face falling into neutrality as he seemed to overcome his previous embarrassment. ‘There’s going to be a practise with my old teammates tomorrow so please play to the best of your ability, don’t let interpersonal squabbles interfere with the game.’ He directed this at the Big Three of squabbles, Nishimoto looked behind him as if expecting this to be directed at someone else.

‘Number two,’ this one earned a pensive sigh from their captain. ‘Please compliment _him_ on all his good spikes. Also don’t touch his hair, you’re going to want to, but don’t.’ The first years looked confused but Akaashi was already moving on with his list.

‘Number three, Komi, if you fight with your brother I will legally have to put you down.’ It was delivered in such a deadpan tone that, for a second, Komi actually believed Akaashi would go through with it without remorse.

‘Number four, remember that you have come very far since the start of the year and I am very proud of you,’ Akaashi sped past this one, embarrassed.

‘Number five.’ A new expression overtook Akaashi’s face, something devious and smug - a face the likes of which they had never been privy to. ‘Don’t expect to win.’

‘Akaashi’s right,’ Onaga agreed over the incredulous uproar. ‘I’ve played with these guys and they play to win, this match is just to show you how strong our upcoming opponents could be. Do your best!’

***

Maki didn’t know what to expect from the old third years but he wasn’t quite expecting… this.  
They were all exceedingly _normal_ , if nervous, looking from the clock to a fidgety Akaashi who kept peering out the slightly ajar door - seemingly waiting for something.

Although they were pretty friendly, not all of them had continued to play volleyball into higher education but you could sense their continued love of the sport.

‘Isn’t everyone here? Why aren’t we starting?’ Nishimoto asked, leaning his weight up on Maki’s shoulder and jumping slightly as a humoured laugh rang out.

‘We’re still missing our ace,’ Saru said from the floor as he stretched. _Their ace?_

‘Hey, hey, hey!’ An exceedly exuberant voice rang out as the gym door rattled open. ‘Sorry I’m late!’

‘Bokuto-san,’ Akaashi had spoken first, rolled slightly on the balls of his feet like he wanted to run to greet this latest stranger.  
  
Bokuto, as Akaashi had named him, was an _unexpected_ guest. With eyes brighter than the sun and hair that bore an eerie resemblance to their team's mascot.   
From appearance alone he seemed to be everything Akaashi would despise, loud and boisterous and- _charging right at him_.  
  
Dropping his bag as he went, Bokuto collided with Akaashi at a sprint, bringing his arms about their captain and lifting him clean off the ground. They span once, twice, Akaashi's arms pinned at his sides as Bokuto wailed some muffled semblance of Akaashi's name into his chest.  
  
‘Wow, you’ve grown so big since I last saw you!’ Bokuto beamed as he set him down, it must have been an in-joke because Akaashi stifled a laugh and reached a hand out before snatching it back and contorting his face into one of neutrality.

He stepped backwards out of Bokuto’s grip and nodded cordially.

‘You too, Bokuto-san. Please warm up quickly, the rest of the team is ready.’ Akaashi said primly before breezing by him and joining his first years on the other side of the gym.

There were a few cheered greetings as Bokuto worked his way through each of the third years and grappled them into forceful hugs one by one.  
Akaashi seemed tense, even more so than usual, the first years observed.

‘Rule number two, Nishimoto,’ Akaashi reminded him sharply as the younger boy’s hand twitched upwards towards Bokuto’s finely sculpted hair.

Bokuto met Takeshi in an brief bro hug, recognising him from some of their past matches when he’d gone to watch his brother play.

Nishimoto and Maki both received hearty claps on the shoulder as Bokuto introduced himself before his eyes finally settled on Yamamura and widened at the number on his jersey.

‘So you’re the new ace?’ Bokuto grinned, but he hadn’t held his hand out yet - Maki felt as though their ' _new ace_ ' was being assessed.

‘Yes,’ Yamamura replied politely.

‘Akaashi’s tosses are the best, aren’t they?’

‘Well I-’  
Now Komi couldn’t see Bokuto’s expression but as Yamamura’s negative tone began he stopped himself almost instantly - tumbling over his words.

There must have been something drastic in Bokuto’s face for his expression to contort into a hauntingly pained smile which - for someone who usually only expressed mild disgruntlement or vague interest - was a shock to the rest of his teammates.

‘Yes, the best, Bokuto... senpai?’ His voice quirked up, not quite sure of the formalities with this stranger. Bokuto seemed thrilled, eyes practically glowing with excitement.

‘Don’t call him that, it’ll go to his head,’ Akaashi said dryly.

‘Akaashi!’ Bokuto cried indignantly.

‘Yo, Bokuto, why don’t you show my brother and his little gremlin friends what a real spike looks like?’ Komi teased, sneering at Takeshi.

‘I don’t think that’s-’

‘Toss for me?’ Bokuto asked, head cocked expectantly.  
  
Nishimoto knew that the relationship between spikers and setters could be an intimate one - but he had assumed that was usually reserved for the ones without secret boyfriends. Because Bokuto’s fond tone of voice was one thing but the way Akaashi stared at him, open mouthed in something akin to wonder, was another.

‘Of course, Bokuto-san.’ He passed a ball to Komi and got into position, eyes blissfully calm as Bokuto radiated an enrapturing aura from the back of the court.

Then Komi threw the ball into Akaashi’s waiting palms, his control of the toss was calm and collected as he set it directly into Bokuto’s waiting hand.

Except there was no satisfying slap of hand on rubber as the volleyball sailed clean over Bokuto and bounced rhythmically down the side of the court.

Silence gripped the gym as if all the third years were holding a collective breath. The temperature of the room seemed to plummet as Akaashi stood speechless, Bokuto looking at his hand as if betrayed, before his gaze trailed down to his shoes - one set of laces untied and his foot only half in the material.

‘Oops, sorry Akaashi!’ He smiled sheepishly, sorting out his shoe and retaking his position as his expression steeled over. ‘One more!’

Akaashi tossed the ball again, it felt as good as the last one - but he couldn’t feel complete, not until-

The ball slammed into the floor on the other side of the court, too fast for him to properly register.

Even though no one was there Akaashi could picture another team on the opposing court, chests to the floor, hands reaching out as they failed to receive the killer spike.  
It made his heart flutter.

Bokuto’s hand was red after hitting the ball with such force - it seems he was evolving with his new team but some things had remained just the same as Bokuto clamped his hand into a fist and punched the air.

‘Hey, hey, hey! Akaashi did you see that spike?!’ He bounced around Akaashi, eager for praise before Akaashi rested his hands lightly on his shoulders to settle him.

‘Nothing short of what I expect from you, Bokuto-san.’ There was a familiarity in the way he touched Bokuto; the way he didn’t lift his hands from his shoulders but instead trailed them down Bokuto’s strong biceps, the other seemingly enchanted by his movement.

 _Wow_ , Nishimoto thought, Akaashi’s boyfriend must be pretty jealous of what these two had.

By the end of the day the first years were left wondering what his relationship with his boyfriend must look like if this was the amount of PDA he expressed with his ace - it wasn’t anything explicit, just small things like how they said each others names or how casually affectionate they were with each other.

At one point Konoha had hooked Akaashi’s bag above the doors and out of his reach and Bokuto had just come up behind him, lifting Akaashi up from about his hips.  
Instead of jumping away, Akaashi had just leaned his shoulders back against Bokuto’s expansive chest and thanked him, blushing coyly.

Maki had grappled Nishimoto into a headlock before he had a chance to yell at them to get a room.

It was nearing the end of practise when the first years saw a side of Akaashi they were more accustomed to, his silently caring nature.

Takeshi had tried tossing to Bokuto but it had been way off, even still Bokuto had gone for it, landing awkward on his ankle and sprawling to the floor.  
Akaashi was yelling his name and ducking under the net before Takeshi even had time to apologise.

It was like watching a child fall and only start to cry when someone started fawning over them, Bokuto whimpered as Akaashi pressed his fingers lightly against Bokuto’s ankle - nothing broken.  
He slung Bokuto’s arm over his shoulder and walked him over to the bench.

‘Oh my- Bokuto, are you crying?’ A flustered expression dawned on his face as he looked down at Bokuto’s glistening face.

‘What if I can never play volleyball again?’ Akaashi sighed audibly and cupped Bokuto’s face in his hands.

‘It’s barely even a sprain, Bokuto, you’ll be able to put weight on it again within the hour,’ Akaashi assured him, face serious. Although it wasn’t anything with any particular warmth Bokuto seemed to perk up instantly.

‘Wow! You’re so smart, Keiji,’ Akaashi’s face flashed through several emotions before settling on embarrassed as Bokuto nuzzled into his palm.  
Akaashi whipped his hand back and both seemed to tense at the sudden loss of contact, the room’s temperature dropping again.

‘Where are you going? Bokuto asked as Akaashi began to move away.

‘To get ice for your ankle-’

‘ _Nooo_ ,’ Bokuto whined, wrapping his hand tighter about Akaashi’s forearm.

Strangely, Akaashi gave in remarkably quickly, settling Bokuto’s injured ankle on his lap before looking towards the nearest third year, Saru, who gave him a thumbs up and jogged off in search of an ice pack.

They sat like that for the rest of practise, talking quietly to each other or yelling instruction to the younger players.  
Sometimes Akaashi’s would trail his fingers absentmindedly up and down Bokuto’s leg but when Bokuto stiffened as his fingers trailed up past the tops of his knee pads, breathing deepening before he tapped subtly at Akaashi’s wrist to halt the action - Komi thought maybe it wasn’t so absent minded at all.

***

Akaashi made sure he and Bokuto were the last in the gym, slinging Bokuto’s arm over his shoulder once more under the pretence of his injured ankle - better safe than sorry.

‘Did you enjoy today, Bokuto-san? Akaashi asked as they made their way to the carpark.

Akaashi listened and hummed along thoughtfully as Bokuto gushed about how well he was doing as captain and how nice it was to see the whole team together again before they finally arrived at their ride home.

‘You haven’t told them about us though,’ Bokuto said suddenly, like he’d been building up the courage to say it.

‘Bokuto, you know why,’ Akaashi sighed a little forlornly. ‘I-I know it’s hard and, trust me, I want to touch you- I mean-’ Akaashi groaned, unable to find the words.

‘You want to be near me, be more like we are in private, but you also want to keep your personal and private lives separate to maintain authority as their captain?’ Bokuto filled in, Akaashi sighed again, this time in relief.

‘You never cease to amaze me, Koutarou,’ Akaashi breathed, resting his head down on Bokuto’s shoulder and falling forward as Bokuto pulled away.

‘Sorry, we’re still in public, I thought you-’

‘Bokuto… we’ll talk about this properly, I promise, we’ll sort it. Right now I just want to go home and make it up to you,’ Akaashi said, noting how Bokuto perked up at his phrasing, leaning into his touch again.

Akaashi swatted away the hands that attempted to wind their way about his waist.

‘Not like that, my parents are home tonight. No guessing what you’ve really missed whilst you’ve been away,’ Akaashi teased, bending over his motorcycle to fetch their helmets.

‘That’s not true, Akaashi!’ Bokuto cried, wrapping his arms around his waist and hugging him tightly from behind.

‘Really, Bokuto-san, it’s only been a week or so, get your mind out of the gutter,’ Akaashi giggled, turning around in his arms and pushing his spare helmet into Bokuto’s chest.

‘Akaashi, you’re making fun of me,’ Bokuto pouted, pulling the helmet on over his head.

‘Only a little,’ Akaashi said, amused, as he pulled his helmet on too and clicked their faces together in a feigned kiss.

He loved riding with Bokuto, he’d gotten the bike as a more convenient way to travel - a few other kids in his year had followed his lead but mostly used them to skip lessons and rev their engines, kick up clouds as they did donuts about the school and jerk each other off or whatever that particular kind of douchebag did in their free time.

Sure he’d definitely got more attention from his peers with his new ride, not that he cared for it, but when it was directed at him from one particular upperclassman he glowed.

Bokuto made his motorcycle into something more than a method of travel, he’d whoop and holler as they turned about corners, clinging to Akaashi’s waist out of exhilaration.

The best part was when they got to their destination and Bokuto would leap off the bike, throwing his helmet off - smiling wildly with ruddy cheeks - and Akaashi could push the strands of hair that had fallen free from his ridiculous updo back into place.

‘I will tell them, Koutarou, just not just yet, okay?’ Akaashi insisted, resting his hands on Bokuto’s broad shoulders.

‘I know, I’m patient, I can wait,’ Bokuto said cheerily, Akaashi just laughed and pulled him into the house.  
  
Another discovery made in their time apart was that Bokuto remarkably easy to indulge now they were no longer on the same team - Akaashi was enjoying all the new ways to tease and touch and talk to Bokuto that had him glowing bright red under the scrutiny.   
In return, Bokuto was adorably adoring, it was amazing how spoiled he made Akaashi feel.  
Knowing however much it felt like Bokuto was pulling ahead, he always had one hand reaching back for him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> you may be wondering where the rest of the first years are, the answer is minding their damn business


	2. Chapter 2

A few of the third years made time to visit practise more regularly, Bokuto in particular the first years noted.  
  
It wasn’t like Akaashi wasn’t _capable_ but they each felt a surge of protection wash over them as Bokuto leaned over their setter to look at the manager's notes, back pressed up to Akaashi’s shoulders. _Seriously_ , did this guy not understand that Akaashi was dating someone?  
  
‘I don’t like him,’ Nishimoto declared, arms crossed as they watched Bokuto snatch the clipboard from Akaashi’s hands and hold it above his head - Akaashi merely sighing and holding out his hand expectantly.  
  
‘Just because he called you out on a shitty spike that one time,’ Komi interjected, reflexively dodging the punch Nishimoto aimed his way.  
  
‘He seems to make Akaashi happy though,’ Maki observed as Bokuto gave the clipboard back, rubbing his neck sheepishly.  
  
Akaashi shook his head fondly, offering the notes to Bokuto once more before snatching them away as he moved to take them - both grinning wildly at their ensuing game of cat and mouse.  
  
‘He does do that thing with his mouth when Bokuto’s around,’ Yamamura said, tapping his chin thoughtfully.  
  
‘You… you mean smile, Mura?’ Maki asked, Yamamura nodded.  
  
When they turned around this time there was no sight of their captain or his apparent _friend_.  
  
‘Gah! We’ve lost visual!’ Komi exclaimed, eyes scanning over the gym.  
  
‘It’s time to clean up anyway, come on Nishimoto, get the net with me,’ Maki jogged off with their wing spiker in tow.  
  
‘You just don’t want to mop the floors!’ Komi yelled, shaking his fist at the two who took their _sweet time_ to bring the net down. Jerks.

***

By the time the gym was all cleared up there was still no sight of the two.  
Sarukui had assured them that they should just leave - Akaashi would be down to lock up in no time.  
  
Naturally the boys had not obliged because their captain was _missing_ and Nishimoto was a note of hysteria away from calling the police.  
  
Whilst Maki attempted to comfort their neurotic wing spiker, Komi was tasked to scout the area for any sign of Akaashi - the gym and surrounding area was clear but as a last thought he dashed up the steps to the clubroom, ready to fling open the doors when he heard movement from within.  
  
‘Bokuto,’ Akaashi’s breathless voice sounded from the other side of the door. ‘Anyone could walk in, we should-’ he cut himself off with a small high pitched gasp.  
  
‘I missed you,’ Bokuto’s voice sounded muffled, as if his mouth was otherwise occupied.  
  
‘I missed you too but we can…’ Akaashi trailed off. ‘Koutarou, you can’t think I’m going to fall for that face again.’ There was silence for a second or two. ‘Fine, but we have to be quick.’  
  
Komi heard Bokuto honest to god _cheer_ under his breath before he heard the sound of clothes being pushed aside and he ran to do the only thing someone in his situation could - tell a responsible adult. Or perhaps an irresponsible adult because he ran into Nishimoto first.

***

‘I can’t believe this guy made Akaashi cheat on his boyfriend,’ Nishimoto sighed for the third time since they had all set off home.  
  
‘I… don’t know what to think,’ Maki replied, nearly throwing Nishimoto off balance as he leaned back on the rear end of his bike - Komi was trying his best to keep pace with them on his short legs, the two were inconsiderate giants.  
  
‘Maybe Akaashi broke up with his mystery man?’ Komi offered.  
  
‘Nah, from what I heard they were like wicked close. Even if they did, Akaashi isn’t a total robot, if they broke it off I think we’d know,’ Maki replied.  
  
‘We should just stay out of it,’ Komi blinked, adjusting to the fact that Nishimoto had just suggested not involving himself in someone else's business. ‘Like Akaashi’s an adult, I kinda thought he was a pretty cool guy but now… I don’t know, it’s bumming me out.’  
  
‘We could always confront Bokuto?’ Maki offered unhelpfully.  
  
‘Well don’t say that, Maki, because now I absolutely have to do that.’

***

It was the first years’ first practise with Bokuto after the discovery they made before the weekend.  
They tried to play it cool but Akaashi had scolded Komi for sloppy receiving when paired on a team with Bokuto and Nishimoto had to step in to stop him from blabbering. Which, to their credit, was probably the best teamwork they'd executed all year.  
  
Worst was they _knew_ Akaashi knew what was up - he kept looking at Bokuto - Nishimoto said it was guilt but… Komi wasn’t so sure, it was more like embarrassment.  
  
He studied Akaashi in the hopes that he’d find a physical answer for his distress.  
  
‘Whatchu lookin’ at?’ Bokuto asked, bending down at the waist to be at Komi’s eye level.  
  
Fucking hell, this guy usually moved with enough commotion to qualify as a one-man band, how on earth did he manage to  _sneak_ up on Takeshi of all people?  
  
‘Nothing,’ Komi replied, spooked, but Bokuto had already followed his line of sight to Akaashi who had his shorts bunched up his thighs as he pulled his long knee pads up.  
  
‘You know he has a boyfriend, right?’ Bokuto babbled, a hint of bitterness in his voice.  
  
Komi was about to bite back ‘ _do you?_ ’ when he spotted it - a patch of burst blood vessels peeking out from the hemline of Bokuto's sweater and the pieces fell into place.  
Because _this_ is what had Akaashi so flustered - there was no way in hell anyone else but him as made these marks on Bokuto - and once again Komi was made uncomfortably aware of his captain’s sex life.  
  
Their setter had probably though the mark would be hidden by a t-shirt but Bokuto wasn’t wearing his usual sports attire and every time he bent over the loose fitting garment would fall forward and hit everyone with an eyeful of Bokuto’s bare torso.  
  
‘Do you?’  
  
Komi hadn’t even heard Nishimoto approach until he came up behind Bokuto, volleyball rested on his cocked hip.  
_Oh my god, this was it, he was about to put Bokuto on blast in the middle of practise._  
  
They were _so_ dead, Komi took a step backwards to retreat but hit Maki’s chest as he stepped forward to watch this scene unfold.  
  
‘Do I-I- what?’ Bokuto stammered.  
  
‘We know you fucked Akaashi in the clubroom last Friday,’ Nishimoto said as Bokuto went an indescribable shade of red.  
  
‘Well _actually_ -’  
  
‘Akaashi’s a good guy, quit ogling him all the time, he’s clearly happy with-’  
  
‘Nishimoto!’ Akaashi snapped, stepping between him and a downtrodden Bokuto. ‘You better have a good reason to be disrupting practise like this and harassing our guest.’  
  
‘Really, captain? We’re not complete morons, we know about your secret boyfriend! And we know about you cheating on him with this-’ Akaashi cut him off with a frustrated groan as he tugged Bokuto toward him, looping his hands about Bokuto’s neck as he leaned up to kiss him.  
  
It was a little uncomfortable as the team watched their captain all but makeout with this essential stranger but eventually Akaashi pulled away - Bokuto thoroughly dazed as he withdrew his hands from underneath Akaashi’s shirt - and turned to point an accusing finger at Nishimoto.  
  
‘If you’d bothered to put your three brain cells together for one moment maybe you’d realise that they were the _same person!_ ’  
  
A hush fell over the court as Akaashi normalised his breathing, Bokuto looking at him like he hung the stars in the sky as he slid their hands together.  
  
‘Wait, you guys really didn’t know they were dating?’ Yamamura asked, walking over to the group from where he’d previously been practising his serve.  
  
‘MURA, YOU KNEW?’ Nishimoto exclaimed, mortified.  
  
‘I mean I guess. His tosses...’ he began vaguely.  
  
‘What about his tosses?’ Bokuto said defensively.  
  
‘No, not that,’ clearly flashing back to whatever expression Bokuto had cornered him with that one time. ‘It’s just when he tosses to me he’s always watching the trajectory of the ball, where it hits the court.’ Yamamura explained, Akaashi had hidden himself behind Bokuto, a little worried what was about to be exposed. ‘But when he tosses to you he always watches you spike, every time.’  
  
Bokuto lit up like Christmas, whipping around to face Akaashi who ducked his head self-consciously.  
  
‘Really?!’ Bokuto gasped, trying to grab Akaashi as he darted around him, ducking and weaving his way around Bokuto’s outstretched hands. ‘Keiji, that’s so cute!’  
  
‘Bokuto-san, please,’ Akaashi mumbled and Bokuto finally cornered him and boxed him up against the wall. ‘Captain authority,’ he explained weakly.  
Bokuto jumped away in an instant as Akaashi refused to meet his first years' eyes, his previous boldness long gone.  
  
‘Right! Yes!’ Bokuto put his hands on his hips and puffed out his chest, clearly still glowing from his new found discovery, courtesy of Yamamura.  
  
‘Laps. All of you.’ Akaashi said, his stern tone mismatching the full body blush that was trailing up his neck.  
Bokuto looked thoroughly pleased with himself.

***

‘Okay, so we all had a lot of… fun last practice,’ Akaashi began tactfully. ‘So I should probably clarify that Koutarou and I _are_ dating and if any of you pry any further into my personal life I will make coach’s punishment drills seem like a light stroll.' Akaashi called out to his assembled team. 'That means you, Komi, I’m not telling you my brother’s name and Haruki is sworn to secrecy.'  
  
‘That’s great captain! But is... _that_ really necessary?’ Maki asked tentatively, gesturing to Bokuto who was wrapped up behind Akaashi, his hands pushed up under the front of his shirt and giving the first years an unfortunate view of the deep purple marks trailing down past his waistband.  
  
‘You guys ganged up on me last time I was here,’ Bokuto stated, tightening his grip about Akaashi who rolled his eyes a little but couldn’t hide his contented smile. ‘You’re scary. Akaashi isn’t.’  
  
‘What was that, Bokuto-san?’ Akaashi asked in a lilting voice, turning his head to face Bokuto’s who inched back. Okay, so maybe Akaashi was a little scary but he was also _immensely attractive_ when he was.  
  
‘Nothing, captain!’ He stuttered out of reflex.  
  
‘That’s what I thought,’ Akaashi turned that sly smile on them. ‘Now how to discipline my precious first years.’  
  
‘Spiking practice! Wait, no, that’s fun. Laps?’ Bokuto babbled, hands grazing Akaashi’s stomach as he gestured wildly.  
  
‘Get creative!’ Konoha supplied helpfully from the back of the gym.  
  
‘Hmm, how about we kill two birds with one stone?’ Akaashi pondered, walking out of Bokuto’s grasp and ignoring his crestfallen _nooo_. ‘Bokuto, you can spike my tosses…’ he trailed off with a small smirk, turning a finger on his first years. ‘And you can receive them.’  
  
‘But we suck at receiving!’ Maki exclaimed at the same time Komi said:  
‘Speak for yourself, dumbass.’  
  
‘As long as you don’t take it to the face I’m sure you’ll be fine,’ Akaashi said. Nishimoto snorted in laughter, Akaashi’s eyes narrowed in on him in an instant.  
‘And it looks like we have our first volunteer.’

***

‘You said we were dating,’ Bokuto beamed, balancing Akaashi atop his feet and walking the two of them about the gym.  
  
Practice had finished a while back but neither of them had it in them to leave the gym, preferring to linger in nostalgia.  
They'd changed since they'd first started dating, Akaashi had learned not to compare their evolution as individuals any more. These changes didn't make things better or worse just... different.  
And however Bokuto changed, whatever man he turned into, Akaashi was sure he'd love _him_ just as much.  
  
‘I mean… we are,’ Akaashi noted, holding onto Bokuto’s arms that were wrapped securely about his midsection.  
  
‘Yeah but… dating!’ Bokuto supplied unhelpfully, spreading Akaashi's arms and spinning the two of them in a spiral that had stars swirling in Akaashi's vision.  
  
‘I’m going to need a few more words than that, Koutarou,’ Akaashi prompted, smiling fondly, fingers slotted tightly between Bokuto's own to keep himself upright.  
  
‘It’s just so _real_ ,’ Bokuto breathed in awe, holding Akaashi in a crushing grip as he buried his face into the crook of his neck. ‘Gah! I love you so much.’  
  
‘Bokuto,’ Akaashi choked out. ‘Your love is suffocating me.’  
  
Finally noticing his vice like grasp, Bokuto released his boyfriend, allowing him to turn around in his arms.  
  
Bokuto was taller, that was a new difference, and broader somehow too. He had stubble that, no matter how many times Akaashi told him to shave, always left him burned red when they kissed.  
These 'imperfections' were like the folds and creases in an book, something that showed he was well-loved.  
Because he _was_ well-loved, Bokuto was _adored_.  
Akaashi was running out of ways to tell him, though as he was soon discovering, these words never lost their weight with the passing of time - he meant them just as much as the first time he'd confessed.  
  
‘I love you too.’  
  
Kissing wasn’t a given between them, they had a shared past and splintered future - but being long-distance only made their time together all the more appreciated.  
  
That being said, Akaashi could stay like this forever.  
  
Bokuto was warm and his lips tasted like honey - they always did, though maybe it was slushie syrup now he thought about it - he held on tight, Bokuto held on tighter.  
  
‘So,’ Bokuto breathed, dragging himself out of the kiss reluctantly. ‘This means - I can - tell my team about - my boyfriend now - right?’ He said between kisses.  
  
‘Hmm, perhaps, what’s he like?’ Akaashi hummed, propping himself back on Bokuto’s feet as they waltzed over the court.  
  
‘He’s smart and capable,’ Bokuto began, sliding a hand down Akaashi’s forearm to interlock their fingers, other hand resting at his waist. ‘And sooo beautiful. He’s the best boyfriend in the world!’  
  
‘In the world?’ Akaashi laughed quietly, feeling a blush dust the bridge of his nose. ‘Tough competition. I have to disagree though,’ Akaashi sighed spinning them to a stop.  
  
Bokuto looked forlorn, wide-eyed and confused. He opened his mouth to protest but Akaashi just put a finger over his lips.  
  
‘I think my boyfriend is better.’

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i’m working on some (hopefully) longer WIPs and juggling those along side my exams so I may be a little MIA but i’m just a diligent guy - s’all good  
> you can always find me on tumblr @ [ccaeos](https://ccaeos.tumblr.com/)  
> thank you so much for reading, i really do appreciate all your kudos and comments!!


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